I sat there as a single, angry tear burned down my cheek. All around me were jeering faces and accusing, abrasive voices. All focused on me.
The voice on the P.A. had just called me to the office. I knew the reason; everyone in the room did. The news that my mother had been arrested for killing someone in a drunk driving accident had spread like wildfire. Mom being my only parent, I was being shipped off to my aunt and uncle, who lived in a different state. Today they would take me out of school. I would leave everyone I had ever known.
I didn’t mind. They’d never liked me, and now they had an excuse to show open hatred. I wouldn’t have been surprised if the devil himself had enrolled, complete with horns and pitchfork.
I hated them, and now I was leaving. It wasn’t so much goodbye as—
“Good riddance!”
And with that, I stood and ran from the room.